Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Motor vehicle door lock
Description:
The invention relates to a motor vehicle door lock equipped with a locking
mechanism, an
actuating lever unit which interacts with the locking mechanism also a drive
impinging on
the actuating lever unit and an anti-theft protection device.
Such motor vehicle door locks are known from practical application and are,
for instance,
described in DE 10 2004 002 756 Al. As usual, the anti-theft protection device
serves to
deactivate the actuating lever mechanically connected to the locking mechanism
during an
impingement of the actuating lever unit by an internal release lever and
during activation by
an external release lever. This ensures that even if, for instance, the window
has been
smashed, unauthorized persons could not open the motor vehicle door using the
internal
release lever. This applies if the anti-theft protection device is active. The
device is then in
the position "Anti-theft protection on".
If the motor vehicle door lock is, however, in the position "Anti-theft
protection off", the
respective motor vehicle door can be opened from inside using the internal
release lever
and from the outside using the external release lever. This assumes that the
door is not a
rear side door in which a potential childlock is and can be engaged. This has
generally
proven to be successful.
Apart from motor vehicle door locks containing such an anti-theft protection
device there
are also door locks also containing a closing/opening device. In this context
reference is
made to utility model DE 20 2008 015 789 U1. In addition, prior art
embodiments disclose,
for instance, opening devices in DE 10 2004 052 599 Al operating as opening
aids. Such
opening devices or opening aids use in the simplest form an electric drive,
lifting a pawl off a
rotary latch of a closed locking mechanism. As a result, the rotary latch can
open with the
aid of a spring and can release a previously retained locking bolt and thus
the respective
motor vehicle door as such.
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CA 02832224 2013-10-03
Prior art is, however, not satisfactory in all aspects. This applies in
particular with regards to
the already described opening aids or the so-called "electric opening". In the
best possible
design this process involves the locking mechanism being disengaged by an
electric motor to
release an associated motor vehicle door. In the event of this process being
unintentionally
initiated by, for instance, a fault current, a fault signal, etc., no
convincing solutions
preventing this have been available so far. This situation is remedied by the
invention.
The invention is based on the technical problem of further developing a motor
vehicle door
lock in such a way that operating reliability is significantly improved, in
particular during
electric opening and the malfunctioning is avoided.
To solve this technical problem the invention provides a generic motor vehicle
door lock
with a buffer member assigned to the actuating lever unit and to an unlocking
lever, which
is controlled by the anti-theft protection device in accordance with a desired
functional
position of the locking mechanism.
As part of the invention the buffer member ensures in connection with the anti-
theft
protection device that a, so to speak, additional securing of the locking
mechanisms is
implemented. Indeed the anti-theft protection device ensures that an electric
opening
process of the locking mechanism is only carried out when the anti-theft
protection device
releases the buffer member for the associated pivoting of the locking
mechanism. If, on the
other hand, the buffer member is blocked, the locking mechanism can also not
move into
the opened functional position. Consequently unintentional opening of the
locking
mechanisms is ruled out, as in this case the anti-theft protection device
blocks the buffer
member and the locking mechanism cannot be opened as a result.
In fact the buffer member is, as it were, interposed between the drive
impinged on by the
actuation lever unit and the locking mechanism. The drive thus acts on the
buffer member,
which in turn transfers the movement of the actuating lever unit initiated by
the drive onto
the locking mechanism. During this process an opening movement of the drive is
for
instance only translated into an opening movement of the locking mechanism via
the
actuating lever unit and the buffer member and then onto the locking
mechanism, if the
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buffer member is, for instance, not blocked by the anti-theft protection
device. As when the
buffer member is blocked, the locking mechanism is not influenced by the
impinged on
actuating lever unit and stays thus in its closed position in the described
example.
Only when, whilst the actuating lever unit is acted upon by the drive, the
anti-theft
protection device also releases the buffer member is the actuating lever able
to transfer a
movement to the locking mechanism via the buffer member. In other words this
prevents,
as part of the invention, any and unintentional opening operations with the
aid of the anti-
theft protection device. Only when the drive impinging on the actuating lever
unit and at
the same time the anti-theft protection device operate in such a way that the
actuating
lever unit can disengage the locking mechanism via the buffer member, does the
desired
opening process occur. This all is achieved with strikingly simple means and
with a simple
design, so that not only the described functional but also cost advantages are
achieved.
The design is in any case such that the buffer member is controlled by the
anti-theft
protection device. If the locking mechanism is to retain its closed position,
the buffer
member is blocked by the anti-theft protection device and cannot act on the
locking
mechanism if the actuation lever unit is impinged upon in the opening sense.
If, on the
other hand, the locking mechanism is to be opened, the anti-theft protection
device
releases the buffer member. Said member can after an opening movement of the
actuation
lever unit open the locking mechanism. In other words, the buffer member is
respectively
triggered by the anti-theft protection device in accordance with the desired
functional
position of the locking mechanism ("open" or "closed").
Apart from this, the anti-theft protection device naturally provides the
functions already
explained above. This means that any impinging of the actuating lever unit has
no effect on
the locking mechanism as long as the anti-theft protection device is in its
"engaged"
position. This means that in this functional position the anti-theft
protection device
continuously ensures that any movements of the actuating lever unit are not
transferred
onto the locking mechanism via the buffer member. Instead, the buffer member
is
subjected to a more or less pronounced compression or deflection during such a
procedure
and in such a way that the locking mechanism is not affected in any way by
this.
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Only when the anti-theft protection device is moved into its "disengaged"
position can the
actuating lever unit impinge on the locking mechanism in the opening sense.
This is because
in this case opening movements of the actuating lever unit are, for example,
transferred
again onto the buffer member, which due to the removal of the blocking
transfers these
movements onto the locking mechanism via the anti-theft protection device,
opening said
mechanism. In this arrangement the design will always be such that in the
position "anti-
theft protection engaged" a respective internal release lever as well as an
external release
lever will have no affect on the locking mechanism.
As part of the invention, an unlocking lever is assigned to the actuating
lever unit. In most
cases, also the said buffer member is assigned to the unlocking lever. At the
same time a
two-part design of the buffer member has proven to be particular advantageous.
In fact the
buffer member generally consists of a rocker spring and a leg spring.
The rocker spring generally ensures that the actuating lever unit is,
depending on its
position, acted upon in the direction "open" or in the direction "keep closed"
of the locking
mechanism. For this purpose, the rocker spring engages in most cases with the
unlocking
lever. If the unlocking lever has exceeded a certain position compared to the
locking
mechanism, the rocker spring can act on the unlocking lever in the "open"
direction of the
locking mechanism. If, on the other hand, the unlocking lever is in a
different position, the
rocker spring ensures that the unlocking lever and thus the actuating lever
unit is acted
upon in the "keep closed" position of the locking mechanism.
In addition to the rocker spring the arrangement is known to also contain a
leg spring. This
leg spring can, on one hand, interact with a coupling lever and, on the other
hand, with the
unlocking lever and/or the anti-theft protection device. At the same time, the
one free leg
of the leg spring rests in most cases against the coupling lever. This free
leg is then,
depending on the position of the coupling lever and/or of an internal release
lever
interacting with the coupling lever, acted upon and can also follow this
movement. In
contrast, the other fixed leg of the leg spring rests against a journal of the
unlocking lever. In
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addition, the anti-theft protection device interacts with the respective fixed
leg of the leg
spring.
For this purpose the leg spring is advantageously mounted on the unlocking
lever. Mounting
of the leg spring on an axis that essentially corresponds to the axis of
rotation of the
unlocking lever has shown to be particular advantageous. This means that the
axis of the leg
spring and the axis of rotation of the unlocking lever generally correspond or
lie inside each
other.
The aforementioned coupling lever, generally resting against the free leg of
the leg spring is
typically mounted in at least one guide. In most cases two guides are used for
the coupling
lever. The two guides are generally provided in adjacent levers. It has proven
to be
advantageous for one of the guides to be provided in an internal release lever
and the other
guide in the unlocking lever. This allows the coupling lever to freely glide
along its
"ineffective" and "effective positions" on the free leg of the leg spring.
If the coupling lever is in its "ineffective" position this corresponds to the
"locked" position
of the motor vehicle door lock. The locking mechanism can only be opened by
the internal
release lever and not by the external release lever if the anti-theft
protection device is also
in its "off" position. If the coupling lever is, however, in its "effective"
position, the motor
vehicle door lock as a whole is in its "unlocked" position. In this case, too,
any movements of
the actuating lever unit are only transferred to the locking mechanism in the
opening sense,
if the anti-theft protection device is in its "disengaged" position. Otherwise
any actuation of
the actuating lever unit causes the actuating lever unit to act on the buffer
member in a
deforming manner without the locking mechanism being opened. In this
"unlocked"
functional position the anti-theft protection device can generally also be
mechanically
disengaged by the actuating lever unit being actuated in the opening sense.
As a result, the invention provides a motor vehicle door lock that, in
particular as regards
the "electric opening" function, provides a significant additional level of
safety. Even
unintentional electric opening processes are not translated into an opening of
the locking
mechanism as long as the anti-theft protection device is in its "engaged"
functional position.
= CA 02832224 2013-10-03
Only when the anti-theft protection device also assumes its "disengaged"
position can the
desired electric opening be translated into the opening of the locking
mechanism.
Below, the invention is explained in more detail with reference to a drawing
showing only
one embodiment, in which:
Fig. 1 shows an overview of the motor vehicle door lock of the invention in
the
"unlocked" position and with the anti-theft detection device being
"disengaged",
Fig. 2 shows the motor vehicle door lock of Fig. 1 during electric opening,
Fig.3 shows the motor vehicle door lock of Fig. 1 and 2 in the locked state
with engaged
anti-theft protection device and
Fig.4 shows the object of Fig. 1 to 3 during mechanical opening.
Fig. 1 shows a motor vehicle door lock equipped with a locking mechanism 1, 2,
only
indicated in the figure. Indeed all figures do show a pawl 1, interacting with
a rotary latch 2
in the usual manner but which is not expressly shown. This is because the pawl
1 and the
rotary latch 2 are located together in a plane vertical to the shown planes of
projection. An
actuating lever unit 3, 4, 16, comprising in detail a release lever 3, an
internal release lever 4
and a coupling lever 16, interacts with the locking mechanism 1, 2 and said
unit then
interacts with an unlocking lever 5 in the example. The arrangement can in
principle contain
even more levers, such as an external release lever, another coupling lever,
etc., which are
however not shown and are of no significance for the described invention. The
figure also
shows a drive 6 to 9, impinging on the actuation lever unit 3, 4, 16. Finally,
the general
arrangement contains an anti-theft protection device 10, 11.
As part of the invention, a buffer member 12, 13 is assigned to the actuating
lever unit 3, 4,
16 and to the unlocking lever 5. This buffer member 12, 13 is actuated by the
anti-theft
protection device 10, 11. This depends on the desired functional position of
the locking
mechanism 1, 2. In other words, the anti-theft protection device 10, 11 either
releases or
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blocks the buffer member 12, 13. In the embodiment the buffer member 12, 13
comprises a
leg spring 12 and a rocker spring 13 and is thus made up of two parts.
Depending on the
position of the unlocking lever 5 and of the actuating lever unit 3, 4, 16 as
a whole, the
rocker spring 13 ensures that the unlocking lever 5 is acted upon in the
"open" or "keep
closed" direction of the locking mechanisms 1,2.
If the unlocking lever 5 is, for instance in the "locked" position of the
motor vehicle door
lock shown in Fig. 3, rocker spring 13 acts upon the unlocking lever 5 in such
a way that this
is impinged on in counter-clockwise direction around its axis 14 as indicated.
If, on the other
hand, the rocker spring 13 or the associated unlocking lever 5 assumes the
"unlocked"
position of Fig. 2, the rocker spring 13 acts upon the unlocking lever 5 in
such a way that it
rotates in the shown clockwise direction around its axis 14. As a result, the
release lever 3
can, when in the functional position shown in Fig. 2, impinge with its
extension arm 15 on
the pawl 1 during the shown "electric opening" and can lift the pawl 1 during
this process
from the associated rotary latch 2 ¨ not shown. The locking mechanism 1, 2 is
consequently
also opened at the end of the "electric opening" movement shown in Fig. 2.
In contrast, the leg spring 12 interacts, on one hand, with a coupling lever
16 and, on the
other hand, with the unlocking lever 5 and/or the anti-theft protection device
10, 11. For
this purpose the one free leg 12a of the leg spring 12 rests against the
coupling lever 16,
which can mainly slide linearly along the said free leg 12a of the leg spring
12. In contrast,
the other fixed leg 12b of the leg spring 12 is supported on a stop 17 of the
unlocking lever
5. In addition, the anti-theft protection device 10, 11 with its cam 11 is
assigned to the fixed
leg 12b of the leg spring 12. Depending on the position of the anti-theft
protection device
10, 11, the cam 11 blocks the fixed leg 12b of the leg spring 12 and retains
the leg spring 12
at the same time. This applies for the position "anti-theft protection device
inserted". If,
however, the anti-theft protection device 10, 11 is in its "disengaged"
position, the cam 11
releases said fixed leg 12b of the leg spring 12.
Die leg spring 12 is mounted on the unlocking lever 5 on an essentially common
axis. This
means that the axis of rotation of the leg spring 12 mainly corresponds with
the axis of
rotation 14 of the unlocking lever 5. Also the arrangement is in most cases
such that the
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aforementioned drive 6 to 9 is designed as an opening drive. For this purpose
the drive 6 to
9 consists of an electric motor 6 and a worm gear 7 driven by the electric
motor 6. The
worm gear 7 engages with a driving pulley 8, accommodating a cam 9 on the
external
circumference. In this way, the drive 6 to 9 can interact with the release
lever 3.
If the release lever 3 is in the position shown in Fig. 3, the drive or the
opening drive 6 to 9
ensures, as part of the opening process shown in Fig. 2, first of all that the
release lever 3 is
moved from its initial position shown by the solid line to the position shown
by the
dashed/dotted line (see Fig. 2). This is achieved with the cam 9, coming into
contact with
the release lever 3 and pivoting the release lever 3 during this process
around its axis 18 in
clockwise direction.
As a result of this operation, the previously blocked coupling lever 16 is
released. Said
coupling lever 16 is in fact arranged in two guides 19, 20 with one guide 19
for the coupling
lever 16 being arranged on the internal release lever 4 and the other guide 20
in the
unlocking lever 5. A cam 21 of the coupling lever 16 engages in the guide 19
of the internal
release lever 4 and is thus captively retained in the respective guide 19 of
the internal
release lever 4 and also in guide 20 of the unlocking lever 5 and is linearly
guided.
It is apparent that the coupling lever 16 also contains a journal 22, sliding
along the free leg
12a of the leg spring 12. If the coupling lever 16 moves from its right and
"ineffective"
position ("locked") as shown in Fig. 2 into the left and "effective" position
(unlocked), said
journal 22 slides at the free end of 12a of the leg spring 12 into a radial
outer position. As a
result, the leg spring 12 is increasingly acted upon. Also, the coupling lever
16 and its cam 21
is released from the release lever 3 and thus enters a recess 23 in the
release lever 3.
The function is as follows. Fig. 1 shows the position (mechanically)
"unlocked", followed by
mechanical opening with the anti-theft protection device 10, 11 "disengaged".
It is apparent
that first of all the release lever 3 has carried out a counter-clockwise
movement around is
axis 18 starting from the locked position shown in Fig. 3. This transition of
the release lever
3 from the "locked" position of Fig. 3 to the "unlocked" position of Fig. 1
can be
mechanically initiated by the internal release lever 4 being slightly pivoted
around its axis 18
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in clockwise direction as shown by an error in Fig. 3. The internal release
lever 4 and the
release lever 3 do in fact share a common axis 18 around which they can be
pivoted.
This operation causes the cam 21 of the coupling lever 16 to enter the recess
23 of the
release lever 3. This operation is assisted by the fact that the rocker spring
13 acts upon the
unlocking lever 5 in clockwise direction as apparent from Fig. 2. After this
mechanical
unlocking process the internal release lever 4 with the coupling lever 16 or
the cam 21 on
the coupling lever 16 rests in any case against the release lever 3 in the
respective recess 23.
As soon as, starting from this functional position shown in Fig. 1, the
internal release lever 4
is pivoted around its axis 18 in counter-clockwise direction, as indicated in
Fig. 1, the
carried-along coupling lever 16 ensures with the journal 22 abutting the free
leg 12a that
the leg spring 12 is acted upon.
As the leg spring 12 with its fixed end 12b is not blocked by the anti-theft
protection device
10, 11 or its cam 11, as the anti-theft protection device 10, 11 is in the
"disengaged" state,
the leg spring 12 "carries along" the unlocking lever 5 during this process.
This is achieved by
the fixed leg 12b of the leg spring 12 engaging with the stop 17 of the
unlocking lever 5. The
unlocking lever 5 thus carries out a pivoting movement in clockwise direction
around it axis
14, as already indicated in Fig. 2 and also in Fig. 1. As a result, the
unlocking lever 5 ensures
that the pawl 1 can be lifted off the rotary latch 2 by the actuating lever
unit 3, 4, 16. The
locking mechanism 1, 2 has been mechanically opened.
A similar scenario is shown in Fig. 2. The figure depicts the "electric
opening" operation.
During such electric opening the release lever 3 must first of all be moved
into its
"unlocked" position by the drive or opening drive 6, 7, 8, 9, as shown by the
dashed/dotted
line in Fig. 2. The position "locked" of the release lever 3 is in contrast
shown by a solid line.
In order to achieve this change of position, the cam 9 of the drive 6, 7, 8, 9
comes into
contact with an arm of the release lever 3 and ensures that during the
transition from the
"locked" position shown by the solid line to the position shown by the
dashed/dotted line,
the release lever 3 carries out a small counter-clockwise movement around its
axis 18, as
indicated by the direction of the arrow, and disengages the pawl 1.
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As a result, the cam 21 on the coupling lever 16 can enter the recess 23 of
the release lever
3. As a result of this process, the leg spring 12 is increasingly acted upon
at its free leg end
12a as the coupling lever 16 is at the same time moved radially outwards and
the journal 22
resting against the coupling lever 16 acts upon the free leg end 12 of the leg
spring 12 with
increasing force. If during this process anti-theft protection device 10, 11
is also disengaged
(see arrow in Fig. 2), the unlocking lever 5 is rotated in clockwise direction
around its axis
14, as indicated, as the leg spring 12 is being acted upon at its free leg end
12a. This is either
caused by the journal 22 or also by the internal release lever 4 being pivoted
around its axis
18 in clockwise direction as shown in Fig. 1. In any case the fact that the
leg spring 12 is
being acted upon at its free leg end 12a ensures that the fixed leg end 12b
carries along the
unlocking lever around the axis 14 with its stop 17, in the described
direction of rotation.
The operation "disengage anti-theft protection device 10, 11" can be carried
out electrically
or mechanically. In any case the operation corresponds with the cam 11 being
pivoted from
the initial "engaged" position as shown in Fig. 3 or Fig. 2 in the direction
of the arrow and
then assumes the "disengaged" position as shown in Fig. 4 or Fig. 1. As a
result, the fixed leg
end 12b of the leg spring 12 is as a whole released from the anti-theft
protection device 10,
11 or the cam 11 and the unlocking lever 5 can, as described, pivot around its
axis 14 in
clockwise direction. As a result, the pawl 1 acted upon by the release lever 3
via the
actuating lever unit 3, 4, 16 is again lifted off the associated rotary latch
2.
This means that as part of the electric opening according to Fig. 2, the anti-
theft protection
device 10, 11 ensures amongst other things and mainly that unintentional
opening
operations do not cause the locking mechanism to open. This is because the
locking
mechanism 1, 2 is only and exclusively opened, if the anti-theft protection
device 10, 11 has
first released the free leg end 12b of the leg spring 12 with its cam 11. If
the leg end is not
released as part of the function depicted in Fig. 2, the leg spring 12 is
compressed as a result
of the internal release lever 4 impinging on it without the unlocking lever 5
changing the
shown position. Only if the fixed leg end 12b is not (no longer) blocked by
the cam 11 of the
anti-theft protection device 10, 11, does the unlocking lever 5 carry out the
described
clockwise rotation around its axis 14 and is the locking mechanism 1, 2
opened.
CA 02832224 2013-10-03
In the functional position shown in Fig. 3 the motor vehicle door lock is in
the "locked"
position as the cam 21 of the coupling lever 16 rests against the release
lever 3 and is
blocked by the release lever 3. Also, the anti-theft protection device 10, 11
is in its
functional position "engaged", so that the leg spring 12 is secured between
the blocked
coupling lever 16, on one hand and the cam 11 of the anti-theft protection
device 10, 11, on
the other hand. From this point a release only takes place if the internal
release lever 4 is
moved slightly around its axis 18 in clockwise direction, as indicated by an
arrow in Fig. 3
and as is apparent from the transition between Fig. 3 and Fig. 4. The coupling
lever 16 can
then be moved with its cam 21 along the guide 19 in the internal release lever
4 and the
cam 21 of the coupling lever 16 is able to enter the recess 23 in the release
lever 3. A spring
impinging on the coupling lever 16 in the respective sense but not expressly
shown in the
figures, can be responsible for this. The subsequent impinging on of the
internal release
lever 4 in the opening sense by a counter-clockwise movement around axis 18
then causes,
starting from the functional position shown in Fig. 2, the release lever 3 to
be carried along
and to take up its position shown by the dashed/dotted line.
If the anti-theft protection device 10, 11 is "disengaged" during this
process, the process
results in the unlocking lever 5 being pivoted around its axis 14 in clockwise
direction and
the locking mechanism 1, 2 being impinged on by the release lever 3 via the
actuating lever
unit 3, 4, 16 in the opening sense.
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